Blog Posts by FitPregnancy

As a working mom, you've got a lot to do. Maybe it's time to take a break?

One of the tenets of being a working mom is being busy. I know I am. I've got deadlines at work and wipes to pick up at Target and I really want to watch the next episode of Parenthood on Netflix, but first, I better set out my workout clothes for tomorrow morning so I'm not stumbling around half awake at 6 a.m. looking for socks, and that reminds me, my son needs an extra set of clothes for his preschool cubby so I should put those in his backpack by the door so I don't forget them in morning rush, oh, and I really need to get that load of laundry done. Whew. See what I mean? Busy.

Read more from Fit Pregnancy about Working Moms.

But while being busy can certainly make you feel accomplished, it's got its drawbacks too, as this widely-read opinion piece on the nytimes.com pointed out.

I wholeheartedly agree, which is why I often put myself on self-imposed toddler time. Being on toddler time

Read More »from Busy Isn't Always Best. Tales from a Working Mom

Sure, you want to do everything right during your pregnancy, but going too far can turn you into an unhappy stress case. (It's not good for your baby, either.)

Researchers know a lot about how to build healthy babies, so it makes sense to follow their guidelines. But if you're making yourself crazy chasing pregnancy perfection, it's time to rethink your expectations. Some cut-and-dried rules-always wear a seat belt, for example, and never smoke cigarettes-merit 100 percent compliance. But with most others, pretty good is perfectly fine.

Stress Less

In fact, all-or-nothing thinking can have downsides for both you and your baby. So give yourself a break, aim for "good enough" with the following expert advice and enjoy your imperfectly healthy pregnancy.

Do I have to live in a bubble?

THE IDEAL Adopt a 100 percent clean and green lifestyle.

GET REAL Make small changes that have big returns.

Prenatal Vitamins Made Easy

»It's OK to be selective about

Read More »from The "Good Enough" Pregnancy

Understanding the prices of needing help to conceive

As more and more women - both young and older - speak out about their challenges in conceiving, the subject of infertility is becoming less taboo. For example, 45 couples recently competed to win free IVF cycles in a video contest sponsored by a Las Vegas fertility institute, Time magazine reports.

Read more: Infertility Treatments Help Older Moms Have It All

But despite all of the news reports on infertility, many of us don't know the money details of this condition. How much does it cost? How do couples handle the long haul to pregnancy?

Time magazine took a look at the financial side of infertility from costs to questions to ask. As the writer found out, conceiving via medical procedures can be quite pricey. "According to RESOLVE, the National Infertility Association, the average cost of an IVF cycle using fresh embryos is $8,158, not including medications, and that's only for one cycle," Time reports. The

Read More »from The Cost of Infertility

Pregnant BelliesMore often than not, you'll find that a protruding belly incites unsolicited comments and advice, unwanted touches (especially the infamous "belly pats") and the telling of pregnancy war stories by other mothers who've "been there." Here are some tips to help you make it through these 40 weeks with grace.

Say what?
When you're pregnant, everyone has comments and opinions to offer. They'll tell you how much weight to gain, what foods to eat and how frequently to exercise. (They also won't hesitate to tell you what not to do.) "While it's impossible to keep people from giving you advice, you have the right to ignore it," Gabriel says.

For the best results, prepare your replies in advance. When Loretta Sharpe, a 46-year-old mother of four, was asked repeatedly if her fourth pregnancy was accidental or planned, she developed a convenient comeback. "I would answer, 'Unplanned but not unwanted,'" she says. "Because I was a little older, people wondered if I really wanted this

Read More »from Etiquette Check: Unwanted Comments During Pregnancy

Find out how much of the pregnancy advice you receive is backed by research, and how much is mere folk wisdom.

When it comes to pregnancy counsel, female family members, pregnant friends and even experienced moms don't always know best. Yet many expectant women are more apt to listen to those sources than they are to follow medical advice. To help you separate pregnancy facts from fiction, we examine the science (or lack thereof) behind several common beliefs. see if you can tell the difference.

Folk Wisdom Or Science? Ginger and acupressure relieve morning sickness.

Answer: Folk wisdom Bad news for the 70 percent of pregnant women who experience nausea and vomiting in early pregnancy: There is no truly reliable treatment for morning sickness. Authors of a Cochrane systematic review analyzed 27 studies involving more than 4,000 pregnant women and found that not a single commonly used remedy, including ginger, acupuncture, acupressure, vitamin B6 and anti-nausea drugs,

Read More »from Pregnancy Wives Tales

Teaching your baby to fall asleep on his own can be challenging at first, but the payoff is big for both of you.

If getting your baby to sleep is a singing, rocking and jiggling process that's exhausting the whole family, you may want to consider sleep training. "The process involves teaching your baby a new way of going to sleep, usually from being rocked or fed to sleep to falling asleep in her crib," says Jodi Mindell, Ph.D., author of Sleep Deprived No More (Da Capo Press).

Cry It Out Method

Experts suggest sleep training when your baby is older than 4 months and is not sick, attempting a major developmental milestone or going through separation anxiety. Training methods differ, but the crucial thing is to pick one and stick to it for at least a week. A 2006 review of 52 studies of sleep training methods published in the journal Sleep found that all the techniques were effective when parents were consistent.

Most training methods suggest you put your baby down drowsy but

Read More »from Tips for Getting Your Baby to Sleep

feeling baby kick for the 1st timeWondering what your baby's first noticeable movement in utero is going to feel like, and when you might expect it? Most women experience that first kick between 17 and 22 weeks, says maternal-fetal medicine specialist Alice Cootauco, M.D., of St. Joseph Medical Center in Baltimore. No fluttering yet? "Routine anatomic ultrasounds at 19 to 20 weeks gestation help us confirm viability of the pregnancy and determine the placenta's location," she says. "If it is positioned in such a way that it's cushioning the movement, the first kick will be harder to feel."

Here's how some moms describe that miraculous moment:

"It felt like I was being poked from the inside."

"It was like having a really strong butterfly trapped in my tummy."

"It felt as though a very light bubble appeared, rose up and popped. I kept thinking, was that it? It wasn't anything like I'd expected."

"I wasn't sure if it was gas or indigestion, or if maybe there was an alien in there. But the nudge was

Read More »from The First Kick: What Does it Feel Like?

trying to get pregnant?Nearly half of all fertility troubles are linked to sperm problems. Here are tips for their proper care and feeding.

Think "fertility problem," and most people assume there's something wrong with the female half of the conception equation. In fact, when couples are having trouble making a baby, what's known as "male factor" is responsible an estimated 40 percent of the time. Here's what a guy can do-and what he should avoid doing-to maximize his chances of making plenty of hardy, healthy, fast-swimming sperm.

Ovulation Calculator: Increase your odds of getting pregnant by finding out which days of the month you're more likely to be fertile.

HE SHOULD:

Eat oranges, not Cheetos Eating fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low-fat protein helps prevent a man from coming up short on the nutrients necessary for making top-notch sperm; vitamins C and E, zinc and folic acid are particularly important. Over-the-counter supplements such as FertilAid for Men and FertilityBlend for Read More »from Little Swimmers: Tips for Trying to Conceive